THE Australian Medical Association (AMA) is calling for the establishment of a dedicated group of health experts to provide clinical leadership and guidance on the regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, with Advanced Pharmacy Australia (AdPha) backing the call.
AMA President Dr Danielle McMullen said AI had gained significant momentum over the past decade, promising to revolutionise medical practice and transform patient outcomes.
However, she cautioned healthcare was a high-risk sector requiring tailored oversight.
"AI is a rapidly evolving field, which has real potential to enhance and save lives," Dr McMullen said.
"But the sector must establish robust and effective frameworks to manage risks, protect patient safety, and ensure the privacy of all involved," she continued.
"Any use of AI in healthcare must be clinically led, ethical, safe, and patient-centred, with its sole purpose being to advance the health and wellbeing of patients and the broader community."
The AMA supports regulatory measures that protect patients, consumers, healthcare professionals, and their data, and emphasises that AI must remain a complementary tool and not a replacement for clinical judgement.
AdPha supports the AMA's call, noting that while AI offers "huge potential" to improve medication safety, streamline workflows, and strengthen patient outcomes, in a high-risk environment like healthcare, innovation must be matched with rigorous safeguards.
AdPha will explore the role of AI and other technology in healthcare in its annual Pharmacy Forecast Australia report, to be released in Oct.
The report will focus on the ability to use, understand, and trust these systems, as well as the risks of over-dependence.
"With an ageing population and workforce pressures, technology will be part of how we build the capacity we need - but it must remain clinically led, robust, and accountable, enhancing rather than replacing clinical judgement," AdPha stated on social media. KB
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